Passing through the Fire Prologue Part 1

"Moreover thou hast taken thy sons and thy daughters, whom thou hast borne unto me, and these hast thou sacrificed unto them to be devoured. Is this of thy whoredoms a small matter, That thou hast slain my children, and delivered them to cause them to pass through the fire for them?"
Ezekiel 16:20-21

Gilrod Quent wiped his forearm across his brow, brushing his sandy blond hair out of his face.  It was barely morning and the heat of the day already plagued the man's body.  A good stack of firewood lay at his side, freshly gathered and chopped.  Not a bad morning's work considering the size of the majority of the trees.  All in all, Gilrod was pleased with how he and his wife and son had survived in this strange, tiny world.

It had been over a year since the Sarbithian family had found themselves in a new, unfamiliar land with no known way to get home.  The entire landscape seemed to be scaled to a much smaller sort of inhabitants.  As it were, the Quent family had a difficult time finding enough food and water to survive.  They had eventually managed to settle in a place with larger, more sustainable livestock and plant life.  But along with the resources came a threat, if one could call it that.  Just over the hill next to which the Quent's had established their home, sat a well-populated city.  Finding such a permanent settlement had lifted the spirits of the family until they discovered how the native residents regarded the aliens.

Gilrod had initially approached the walled city on his own, quickly seeing that the highest spire among the buildings was only twice his height.  The wall itself barely reached his knees.  His observations were swiftly interrupted by a volley of tiny arrows piercing his legs and lower torso.  He cried out, more in surprise than in pain, and scrambled back.  He only caught a few glimpses of those firing at him, and balked at the minuscule faces full of unadulterated fear.

Giving up any amiable contact with the little creatures, he headed back home, dejected and discouraged.  It was now two months after the encounter.  Neither he nor his wife had attempted any communication since.

Gilrod gathered up his wood into a bundle, tied it all together, and slung it over his shoulder.  It was time for him to check his traps for any animals his wife could cook for dinner that evening.  He was at first wary of setting any up for fear they might catch one of the little city folk, but he made sure to make them at least somewhat noticeable so that anyone with an intelligent brain could easily avoid them.  He thankfully had yet to find a tiny person trapped in one, but he was always worried.

To his delight, two of his traps had each humanely snared a large, hearty-looking beast.  Gilrod made quick, painless work of the animals and tied their legs together so he could carry both of them in one hand.

As he prepared to head home, a peculiar sound reached his ears.  It sounded like no animal he had ever heard before.  His curiosity got the better of him and he followed the sound.  The noise led him to a clearing not far from the city and he grew mindful of his surroundings.  He scanned the clearing until they rested on a small pole stuck vertically in the ground.  The sound paused for a moment, just when he began to recognize what it was - a sound he had not heard in over a year.

He remained at the edge of the clearing, unsure of how to proceed.  By now, he was almost fully certain that the sound was a child's cry, and cursed may he be if he did nothing to help a child in distress.  He did not even care if the child happened to be one of the tiny creatures so terrified of him.  He was going to help.

With resolve, he took a step into the clearing.  Immediately, a wail of pure terror shot to his ears.  His eyes snapped to the pole in the ground.  A chain, attached to its base, ran along the ground until it connected to the tiniest ankle he had ever seen.  The body of which the ankle was a part was wrapped tightly in a colorfully designed membrane.  All else he could see peeking out from the covering was the top of a shining head of golden hair.  The little bundle continued to make a heart wrenching sound as it shivered violently.

Gilrod slowly knelt down and placed his wood and game on the ground.  How frightening he must have looked with two dead animals hanging from his hand.  Freed from his burdens, he crawled forward on his hands and knees toward the miserable creature.  Amongst the crying, he thought he could make out what sounded like words from an unknown language.  When he was close enough to touch the creature, he let out a gentle sigh and risked speaking to it.

"Are you okay, little one?" he asked in the quietest voice he could manage.  "Why are you chained?"

As soon as the words left his mouth, the beautiful membrane flew open and the creature let out a shriek.  Gilrod's breath caught in his throat when his eyes rested on a tiny face contorted in terror.  The membrane spread out and formed what looked to be a set of beautiful butterfly wings.  The little wings began to flap furiously.  Though it broke his heart to look upon such a terrorized, pitiful being, Gilrod observed that the face belonged to that of a young girl, probably just young enough to have been his own daughter.  She was dressed in what must once have been a pure white robe.  Metal rings adorned each of her wrists.  A golden pendant hung from her pale neck and glittering jewels dangled from newly pierced earlobes.  A colorful sash draped over her trembling shoulders.

Gilrod could take no more of the girl's terror.  He seized the taut chain in a comparatively massive fist and effortlessly pulled it apart.  The girl's wings faltered and she dropped to the ground.  She stiffened, now too afraid to even move, as Gilrod slowly reached for the cuff around her ankle.  Her eyes clenched shut and tears streamed relentlessly down her face when his fingers made contact with her tiny limb.  He continuously whispered gentle words of encouragement to her.  By now, he knew full-well she could not understand him, but he hoped his tone would sufficiently deliver the message.  He did his best to painlessly remove the chain from the girl's ankle.  The metal was easily pliable in his fingers and it did not take him long.  When the girl was freed, she curled back up into her former fetal position.

Unable to help himself, Gilrod brushed his knuckles gently against the girl's back.  She squealed and shrank away from his touch.  But Gilrod remained stubbornly determined to cause the tiny winged girl to associate his touch with safety and comfort.  He tried again, gently shushing her sobs.  If he were to help her, she needed to trust him.  With each stroke of his fingers, the girl began to relax more and more, though whether it was due to trust or sheer exhaustion, Gilrod could not tell.

When he felt she had sufficiently calmed down, he slowly cupped his hands around her little body.  The girl flinched, but peeped out from behind the shield of her wings.  He offered her a warm smile and waited a few moments before cautiously lifting her off the ground.  Tears again formed in her eyes and she again covered her face with her wings.

This will not do, Gilrod thought to himself, and pulled her close to his chest.  He continuously rubbed a finger up and down her back.  He watched the girl carefully.  He believed she could probably hear his heartbeat, and he could only hope it would provide her some comfort.

He smiled to himself when the girl's head again left the security of her winged canopy.  She seemed to start a bit as she took in her surroundings.  Gilrod's smile widened when he saw her little hand follow her head out from behind her wings.  She reached out and grasped a tiny handful of fabric from his tunic.  He took a deep breath causing the girl to release his clothing and look worriedly up at his face.  His smile did not falter.  He would get this child to trust him yet.

"That's it," he breathed when the girl's features softened.  "That's a brave girl."

He continued to hold her until he noticed the sun had almost reached its highest point in the sky.  He looked back down at the girl cradled against his chest.  His heart warmed when he saw that she was asleep.  It would be a shame to wake her, but he had a wife and son to go home to, not to mention this girl probably had a family of her own who was worried sick.  He shifted his hands around her in an attempt to gently wake her up.  She stirred and an annoyed expression crossed her face, but she eventually opened her eyes.

Gilrod made sure that the first thing she would see was his smiling face.  She tensed as her eyes focused, but quickly calmed down.  To Gilrod's delight, she nestled closer into him.  But both of them needed to get home.

"Where is your home, child?" he asked, speaking more to himself.  The girl cocked her head at him and a hesitant stream of unintelligible words left her mouth.  Such a precious little voice it was.

"How about I take you to the city?  Will you be able to find your way home from there?"  He gave her one more smile before getting to his feet.  The girl squeaked and grabbed hold of his shirt.

"There now, dear heart," he shushed.  "You're fine."  He walked over to where he left the wood and animal carcasses.  He transferred the girl to one hand and stooped to gather up the supplies.  He stood back up and faced the direction of the city of the tiny, winged creatures.  The girl squirmed around in his hand and he opened up his fingers a bit so she could stand in his palm.

She faced away from him and raised her arms high above her head in a satisfying stretch.  Gilrod's eyes widened in awe as she stretched out her wings in a similar fashion.  Each one was as long as she was tall.  The entire wingspan was almost as wide as his chest.  The girl gave a few flaps and hovered above his hand for a moment before gracefully landing back on her flesh and bone perch.  She turned to face him and gave him a trusting smile.  The sight of it nearly caused his heart to sprout wings itself and soar off into the still rising sun.  The girl pointed toward where the city remained out of sight with a questioning look on her face.  Gilrod smiled and nodded, pleased with her reaction of relief.

When he took his first step toward the city, the girl dropped to her knees from the movement.  She quietly grunted, but remained seated.  They traveled in contented silence for a while.  Gilrod could not take his eyes off the tiny being in his palm.  He could not fathom the fact that he held an entire life in his hand.  The only comparison he had was when he held his newborn son for the first time.

The two arrived at the edge of the city a little after the sun reached its highest point in the sky.  Gilrod crouched down in the surrounding trees so he would not be seen by any of the city's other residents.  He lowered his hand to the ground and allowed the little girl to hop off.  He gave her a small nudge with his forefinger, nodding to the city.  She appraised him for a moment, then took to the air in a flurry of wings.  In a blink of an eye, she was gone.

With a sad smile, Gilrod stood and turned to go home.  A faint flapping reached his ears.  He suddenly felt a tiny brush against his cheek.  His heart leapt when he realized the girl had come back and planted a tender kiss on his cheek.  He kissed his own finger and gently touched her red face.  She grinned and once again darted away.

As Gilrod walked back to his house where his family waited for him, he pondered over his encounter with the little native.  He hoped and prayed that she would give a favorable report of him to her people.  Perhaps then, he could make friendly contact with the tiny creatures.  He was certain their two different species could greatly benefit the other.  He did not expect he would ever see the little girl again.